Authorities are investigating in the aftermath of a possible barricade situation at a Maryland store that ended when police went inside and did not find anyone, investigators said.

The incident began around 9 a.m. and stretched for several hours, shutting down sections of a street near the Hyattsville business Monday morning. By 2 p.m., Prince George’s County police announced that a team made safe entry into the building and that no one was found inside the store.

Investigators said the barricade situation began shortly after a store employee alerted a passerby about an attempted robbery inside a business in the 6400 block of Annapolis Road.

Police said the employee walked into the store around 9 a.m. and was assaulted by a gunman several minutes later. At some point, the employee escaped the store and flagged down a passerby, who called authorities.

The employee, who never saw the gunman leave the store, watched the business the entire time before police arrived, investigators said.

Officers tried to contact the gunman multiple times, added police, who closed Annapolis Road in both directions between the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and Cooper Lane.

After five hours, authorities said the building was cleared and road closures in the area were lifted.